Sleepless
by SoraGirl
Summary: When Jeera can't sleep, she turns to Tak for help and finds more than she was looking for. Jeera x Tak.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Tak :(! 

AN: Not nearly enough Tak fanfiction out there. I think Tak x Jeera is an adorable pairing! Hope you enjoy :) Reviews are much appreciated! 

_**Sleepless**_

There is something powerful about being awake in the middle of the night.

It can be exhilarating, like when you and your friends stay up together and feel like rebels running around reeking chaos while the rest of the world sleeps. It can be calming, like when you stay up all night talking with someone till it's as if you're the only two people in the world.

And it can be terrifying, like when you've been tossing and turning in bed for hours and can't sleep and keep thinking you can't sleep and everyone else is sleeping and you'll never fall asleep and you're terrified and lonely and depressed and desperate…exactly like how it had been for Jeera for the past week.

It all started when Zaria fell for some jerky chief from one of the surrounding tribes, which was all well and good until she decided to run off and get married to said jerk, leaving Jeera the next in line to be chief. And that might have been fine too…that is if her father hadn't told her a week ago that he was planning to retire within the month, making Jeera the new tribe leader.

She should have seen it coming. She should have started preparing herself for it as soon as Zaria had left. But she hadn't; she had wanted to enjoy her last carefree days of youth and because of that she was tangled and sweating in her sheets, unable to drift off into any kind of peaceful state.

She just couldn't stop thinking. Every time she closed her eyes, a thousand and ten worries about all she could mess up rushed around inside her head. She tried distracting herself and counting sheep and reciting rhymes she'd memorized over and over again in her mind…but all of it was useless. The more determined she was to fall asleep, the more she stayed awake.

There's only so much you can do, and there's only so much you can take. So she twisted around a few more times in her bed, stood up, and then finally proclaimed, "Alright, that is _it_." 

A few moments later, Tak was awoken by a banging on his door. He opened his eyes groggily and closed them again, hoping whoever was there would just go away.

"_**Tak**_," yelled the visitor _still _banging on his door. Tak grumbled lowly and forced himself out of bed, muttering to himself something about "…a shaman's duty…" He was still rubbing his eyes when he opened the door.

"Jeera?" he questioned, squinting to make out the figure in the darkness.

Seeing her half-asleep friend leaning exhaustedly against his dorm frame seemed to suddenly remind Jeera that it was, in fact, the middle of the night and other people actually were sleeping. She blushed a little at this realization, feeling slightly guilty for waking Tak up.

"I'm sorry," she fumbled. "I was just--sorry, you were sleeping. I'll just--"

"Well, I'm awake now," Tak pointed out, adding a large yawn as he stretched his arms out over his head. "So, what's up?" 

Jeera exhaled heavily, closed the door, and sat down on the closest chair. "I can't sleep."

Tak sat down on the ground in front of her (mostly because he was afraid if he sat down anywhere else, it was likely he'd fall right back asleep). "Well, have you tried--" he started.

"I've tried _everything_," she interrupted impatiently. "Do you know some kind of spell or something…maybe a potion?" 

Tak noted the desperation in his friends eyes and the dark circles under her eyes. "How long has it been since you got a decent night's sleep?" he asked.

Jeera sighed and put her face in her hands. "A week."

Tak frowned with concern. "Is something bothering you?"

"I…there…I- don't know--a lot of things!" she snapped. Her father had asked her to keep his retirement on the down-low to prevent any kind of panic. In any other case, she would probably just have disobeyed him, but for some reason, she didn't want Tak to know she was panicking because she couldn't handle being chief.

The shaman stared at her with wide, hurt eyes. "Look, I'm sorry," she mumbled, closing her eyes and rubbing her temples. "I'm just really, _really_ tired. So can you help me or what?"

"Jeera…you know I'm not always the best with my spells, and if I messed up a spell to put you to sleep…well….it could be dangerous. Maybe we can ask Jaboba?"

"No!" she snapped again. Her father had told Jaboba about his retirement. If they asked him for help, he would put two and two together and realize that she was nothing but a scared little girl, unfit for a duty that belonged to her by birth. "I…don't want to bother anyone else. I just--never mind, it was stupid anyway." She immediately got up and headed to the door.

Tak, in the most alertness he had shown since she'd arrived, dashed in front of her and blocked the way. "It's not stupid. We could try non-magic things. Maybe I could read some of Jaboba's notes to you. Those always put me to sleep."

Jeera felt guilty for keeping Tak up with her, but her desperation to finally get some sleep loomed larger. "Alright," she sighed, knowing they were both in for a long night.

Hours later, the sun rose over the two semi-conscious friends sitting admist a pile of sheep, tea bags, pillows, and other failed plans. 

Jeera winced as the first rays of sun touched her eyes. "I hate this part," she murmured. 

Tak could only respond with a low grumble at first, but as the morning grew brighter, he was forced to wake up. "I'm sorry I wasn't any help." 

Jeera shrugged as she attempted to extract herself from the pile of junk around her. "Well, it was much better than being up all alone." She grinned at him. "You know what they say about misery loving company."

"I'm sure you'll eventually have to just pass out," he said, trying to reassure her. 

"Yeah," she smiled, having no intentions of forcing Tak to suffer with her again even if her insomnia persisted. 

"See ya," she noted from the door, but Tak, having just passed out, responded only with a snore. 

It came as no surprise to Jeera that the next night, she still could not sleep. This time though, she refused to ask for any help and instead, went back to her lonely routine of tossing and turning until the sun came up.

That day, her lack of sleep was more obvious than ever. She zoned off several times while listening to tribe members and started talking to the sheep on multiple occasions. 

"Jeera?" Tak questioned, as she starred into the distance and began to drool onto the mango she had been cutting up. "Jeera!" he tried again but louder. 

Jeera snapped to consciousness, the blade slicing straight threw the mango.

"Maybe I should do that," Tak suggested, moving her gently to the side.

"Uh, thanks," she responded, shaking her head to try to wake up a little more.

Tak watched her carefully. "Still no sleep?"

"I slept!" she defended at once. "I just--I'm just distracted. You know--busy day and all."

Her lie was anything but convincing, but Tak could tell from her tone she wasn't going to change her story. He knew Jeera didn't like to look vulnerable at all, or like needed any kind of help, but he still wished she trusted him enough to at least tell him the truth. He put the matter to the back of his mind for the time and focused on keeping all the pointy objects away from his friend. If she wasn't ready to open up to him yet, he would just make sure he'd be there when she was.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: **__Still don't own Tak :(_

_**Sleepless**_

_Part II_

Jeera wasn't exactly sure how long she had been staring at the roof of the hut that evening when she heard a knock. She glanced at the door but then just sighed breathily. She had been wishing for someone to save her from her lonely boredom, and now…she was hallucinating. Great.

Just when she was ready to resign herself back to staring at the ceiling, she heard another knock. Immediately, she got up to answer the door. Even a hallucination was better than no one at all.

Expecting to open the door to some sort of giant-living-pillow taunting her to come to sleepy land, she was quite surprised to find Tak instead, loaded up with a variety of candy, games, and other junk.

"Tak?" Jeera asked, rubbing her eyes. "What are you doing here?" 

The shaman-in-training didn't need anymore of an invitation, he strode inside, set his belongings on a nearby table and shut the door. "You know, I was just bored and figured you might be up…"

"Bored, at one in the morning?" The question sounded sarcastic, but Jeera had only the sincerest love for her friend behind it. She knew exactly what he was doing and couldn't help but be extremely grateful for it.

He sighed, realizing lying to Jeera just wasn't going to work. She knew him too well, and he was a pretty terrible liar to begin with. "Alright, I could tell you still weren't sleeping and well…I'm your friend, and it's my job to help…so if I can't help you fall asleep, then I can at least stay up with you."

Before Jeera could respond, he plopped down on her bed and began munching on some of the candy he had brought. It was his way of telling her that whether she liked it or not, he was staying. 

As Jeera approached him, Tak silenced a gulp. He braced himself for an angry punch or a stern lecture, but instead, he found himself emerged in a hug. The tightness with which his friend embraced him showed her gratitude more than her words ever could have. Tak squeezed back just as fiercely. Jeera let go, exhaled loudly, and then plopped down beside her friend. He smiled and held out the bag he was holding, "Candy?"

A few hours later when they were both running off the rush that comes with copious amounts of sugar and staying up all night, Jeera sat with her back against the wall, laughing at rather magnificent Zaria impression her friend had just performed.

Tak, laying out upside-down, feet against the wall, laughed too for a few moments, before stretching out his arms behind his head and closing his eyes contently.

Jeera's laughter stopped, and she questioned for a moment whether she should tell him the real reason for her sleepless nights. She watched him, a grin spread across his otherwise resting face and felt warmth.

"Tak?" Her voice sounded small and timid.

Tak's eyes shot open. "Wh-What? I'm awake! I was just--"

Jeera cut him off, her eyes directed to the ceiling, "There's a reason I haven't been able to sleep."

Tak was tempted to say something clever but stopped himself. He could tell from her tone that saying this was hard for Jeera, and he doubted any of his lame attempts at humor were going to help the situation. Instead, he moved to where she sat on the bed and sat next to her. He locked his eyes to her.

Jeera took a deep breath in, preparing herself. She figured it was like a bandage you just rip off in one quick stroke; she was going to have to just spit out. "By the end of the month, I'm going to be chief." Her voice wavered fearfully at the end. She had no idea saying it aloud could make it so much more terrifying.

_"What_?" It was the only response Tak could muster.

"My dad's retiring and with Zaria gone…" She put her face in her hand. "I'm going to screw everything up."

Seeing Jeera with her head in her hands, looking absolutely horrified, forced Tak to get over his surprise. He put his arm around his friend and squeezed. "What are you _talking _about? You'll make a great chief!" 

"I don't know how to lead anyone!" She exclaimed desperately. "It's too much responsibility for me to handle on my own!" 

Tak used one hand to pull Jeera's hands from her face and the other to lift her chin toward him. "Jeera--you _do _know how to lead, you know I'd be lost with out you. And you _won't _be on your own. Your dad will be there to help while you get the hang of it, and you've always got me. I might not be the best at home-made insomnia remedies, but I've gotten to be a pretty good Shaman."

Jeera knew they were just words, just her best friend saying anything he could to make her feel better. She knew it didn't lessen the chances of her making all the million horrible mistakes she'd been worrying about. She knew all that, but for some reason, maybe just because she had told _someone_, she felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. With Tak there beside her, promising to stay there, she felt…safe.

"You promise you'll stay then?" Jeera asked, her own exhaustion keeping her from monitoring her words. "You'll stay with me, even if I mess up? Even if things get tough?" 

Tak squeezed her shoulder and (in a move he thought was quite daring) kissed her on the forehead. Jeera, feeling as if the sleepless nights of the last week and a half had all just caught up with her at once, yawned and leaned her head against the shaman's chest, closing her eyes. Her half conscious-self noticed for a moment the way Tak's heart begin racing the moment she had laid her head on his chest. But she thought of it only for a brief moment, because a moment later, she was asleep.

The next day passed by without fanfare and when bedtime rolled around, Jeera was confident her insomnia was over, and she'd be able to sleep fine. She'd talked it out so apparently, she was cured.

Hours later, Jeera found herself awake and furious. No matter how many times she played the conversation over in her head, she couldn't regain that safe, warm feeling she had had last night that had allowed her to finally sleep. 

She tossed around for a few more hours until her anger at her own insomnia finally became too much, and she threw herself out of bed. It was like she was engaged in a battle with her own brain, and she would do _anything_ to win. Which is why she was unable to stop herself from going to wake up Tak again. She didn't want to bother him, she knew he needed sleep too, but if comforting words from a friend were the only things that could put her to sleep, she didn't really have anywhere else to turn. 

Tak was smiling when he answered the door. He would never tell Jeera this, but that night he hadn't been able to sleep either. Trillions of anxious thoughts buzzed around his mind, worried if Jeera was sleeping, worried for what she'd face as chief, worried for what he'd face as a chief's shaman. One particularly unsettling thought, however, was a resurfaced memory. It had popped up as he had lay awake in his bed, worrying about all those things and worried about what it meant that he had loved the feeling of his best friend falling asleep in his arms. He had nearly fallen out of his bed when he remembered it: a long ago JuJu prediction that he would marry the next chief.

He hadn't let himself think too much about it because there was just too much to think about. Back then, it had been easy enough to let go because they hadn't been absolutely positive who the next chief would be. Now, unless something terrible happened to his best friend in the next few weeks, he knew without a doubt who the next chief would be, and she was looking right at him.

"Couldn't sleep?" Tak asked, letting his friend in and shutting the door behind her. Despite all his confusion and anxiety and the fact that most of that confusion and anxiety was caused by her, Tak felt unexplainably happy that Jeera had stopped by. 

Jeera didn't answer, however, she was too distracted. It was that feeling again. Security, ease, safety…warmth….whatever it was, it was there. All at once it came to her: that feeling hadn't come from what Tak had said…it had come from Tak. 

"I--" she fumbled, not exactly sure how to take this new realization. Tak's eyes were, as usual, a mix of worry, sincerity, and kindness with a sort of smile hidden inside them. The feeling was getting the best of her again, making her too tired to use reason.

So she didn't try to, instead she just bluntly asked the question of most immediate

concern. "Can I stay in your bed tonight?" 

Tak was tempted to ask Jeera what was wrong with her bed but thought better of it. If it made her feel better, helped her sleep, of course she could sleep in his bed. "Sure," he said with a smile. Jeera smiled and gave a quick nod before climbing into bed. 

Tak got out a blanket from a cabinet nearby and laid down on the floor near the bed. Jeera looked down and felt defeated. Of course. She had tried to be vague to save herself from too much embarrassment and as a result, Tak had totally missed the point. It wasn't the bed she needed to help her sleep, it was him. 

She lay there for a few moments, trying to figure out a way to get her friend to lie closer to her without looking like a lunatic or an idiot. She couldn't think of a single phrase and even if she could, she doubted she'd have the conviction to say it. Yet, she still needed sleep, and she was still inches away from it, inches away from winning the battle. She wouldn't give up now. 

She silently slid down off the bed and without a word laid down next to Tak on the floor, her head inches away from his chest, which, as if on que, began to thump wildly. Somehow though, he managed to say nothing and felt his own worries calmed by Jeera so peaceful beside him. In seconds, they were both asleep.

And so it became routine. Every night, without a word, Jeera would enter the hut. Tak would silently smile, move over and pull up the sheet for her to get in. It was nothing dirty; in fact, they hardly even touched. It was enough to lay near each other. It became a sort of ritual so usual they never said a word about it. It was as if it was as normal as breathing. No reason to mention it at all. 

That is, until the night before the chief told his people he'd be retiring in little more than a week. Jeera knew the second her people found out how soon she would be the new chief, her private life would be gone. A guard would be posted outside her hut, and there would be no way of sneaking out. Jeera and a few high ranked officials were the only ones who knew that tomorrow would be the day the chief announced his impending retirement and named Jeera as his successor, so when she entered Tak's hut, he had no reason to think this night would be any different.

He knew from the second she got under the covers that something was up. She sighed emptily and then turned to face him. She caught his eyes under the blankets. "I'm scared," she announced.

Though it was a harsh violation of the silent protocal that had become law in their ritual, it somehow felt no different, no less serene. "Of what?" Tak asked, as if they were having this conversation outside their strange situation.

"Tomorrow my father announces his retirement. It's the start of everything. They'll expect me to be ready. I'll have to be ready. I'll have to be all on my own," Jeera said, more matter-of-factly than anything else.

"You're not on your own!" Tak said. "We're best friends; we're in this together!"

She looked at him strangely, as though she had not heard his words, as though she was seeing him in some new light. "You should be chief. You've had it…power…you've had power all this time, but you never seemed this scared."

"You've been scared for me," Tak smiled. "Or don't you remember worrying about every spell I cast and every JuJu I asked for help? You looked out for me when I wasn't sure I was strong enough. Well, you _are_ strong enough, but I'll still protect you." 

"We're both going to be very powerful," Jeera realized in a dream-like voice, her eyes seemed glossed over slightly, as if she was imagining some time in the future. 

"Power isn't all bad, Jeera. Powerful people can make the right kind of difference." Tak paused for a moment before deciding he would say what he wanted to, even if it seemed foolish. "I know there's some reason I was given the power of the JuJu when I was so young. I think it was for you. I think you're going to be the start of something great for the tribe, and I'm just here to give you all the help you need."

Jeera laughed at this. "Tak, if anything, it's the other way around."

They were both silent for a moment, smiling at each other under the covers.

"I promise everything will be great," Tak soothed. He had only said it as an excuse to reach over and hold his hand against his friends cheek. He had expected Jeera's eyes to roll or dart away nervously, but instead they remained fiercely steady against his own, like they were challenging him to do something. 

Tak couldn't believe that his hand was almost shaking. Everything else forgotten about, every part of him screamed for him to kiss her, yet all those parts seemed frozen in place. He was too nervous, too excited, too hopeful to move an inch. 

"You're right. I think I'm ready now," Jeera whispered. She may have been talking about becoming chief…but Tak hoped she was talking about _right _now. That was all the extra encouragement he needed, with his hand still gently on her cheek, he moved in slowly and kissed her.

Jeera felt a tingle of magic in the shaman's kiss and ironically enough, the one person who could comfort her enough to let her sleep, could jolt her enough to make her feel like she'd never been more awake. The kiss was short but held so much energy and anticipation that when they parted, they were both out of breath.

Jeera grinned, her face still inches away from Tak's. "Took you long enough," she whispered. 

With that, Tak grinned so giddily he might have looked like a madman to anyone else. He immediately kissed her again….and again and again and again.

They both giggled as they kissed as playfully as they had teased when they were younger.

"Mrs. I'll-never-date-Tak! I knew you wouldn't be able to resist me," he teased between pecks.

"Who says we're dating?" she played, raising an eyebrow before she kissed him again. It was safe and dangerous, thrilling and serene, new and familiar. It was perfect; he was perfect. When they parted this time, she smiled whole heartedly at her best friend.

Tak paused for a moment, looking at the grin of a future chief and thinking how much he wanted to kiss her again. Jeera's eyes turned inquisitive as the silence lasted a second too long. 

"I love you," Tak suddenly stated, very plainly. 

For what was probably one of the first times in her life, Jeera didn't think for a second about what she said, instead, she felt it. The words spilled from her naturally, like they had always been there, waiting to be released. "Well, big deal. I love you too." 

It was not over, Tak and Jeera both knew. Jeera would still have sleepless nights, still have to become chief. Tak would have to perfect his skill and become a shaman. He didn't know if the prophecy was right. He didn't know if he'd end up marrying Jeera, if their union of chief and shaman would bring the tribe to greatness. But he knew they had taken the first step. It was up to both of them to determine where the path lead from there. 

_Fin_.

Hope you liked it! If I get enough reviews, I'll definitely be writting more Tak fanfic in the future :)


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